Not for you
by TheAlchemist'sDaughter
Summary: REWRITTEN! Starfire moved away from the TTower after a messy breakup with Robin. Now, after three years,Raven calls her back...robstar, bbrae revised, final chapter up!
1. The Call

Chapter 1

The phone was ringing.

Starfire heaved herself out of bed and padded softly over to the phone.

"Hello?" she said, her voice hoarse from sleep.

"Starfire? Is that you? It's me, Raven." was the reply that crackled through the receiver. Starfire was silent for a moment, her eyes wide, opening and closing her mouth while trying to think of something to say. Finally, she decided on –

"Are you alright? I told you this number was only for emergencies." And she had. When she left the Titans, she had told them not to call her unless they really needed her.

"Well I kind of need your help, have you heard about me being…."

"Pregnant? I heard." she finished when Raven hesitated.

"Right, well I could really use some female company round about now, Beastboy won't treat me like a normal person anymore, I've suddenly become fragile in his eyes."

Starfire sighed, " I don't think that counts as an emergency, Raven" Her eyes were already closed, begging to go back to bed.

"Please Star, we all want to see you again, we miss you" Ever since Raven had gotten together with Beastboy, she'd slowly but steadily loosened up.

"Oh Raven, I miss you too, but you know I can't." Starfire didn't like saying no to her old friend, she really didn't, but she couldn't visit them. Not with_ him_ there.

"And that's your final answer?" said Raven

"I'm afraid it is." said Starfire. She heard Raven sigh heavily,

"I hoped I wouldn't have to do this, Starfire"

"Do what?"

"I'm calling in the favour you owe me, Star" Starfire bit her lip. Once, when she was still with the Titans, Raven had helped her by doing something completely out of character to help her get Robin. She had said she'd only do it if she could call on Starfire at any time for any reason. "You swore on it, remember? Please, I'm going crazy alone with this lot" A hint of bitterness had seeped into her voice and as if on cue, Starfire heard something in the background shatter. "Please?"

Maybe it was the please, the promise, the friendship the two had once had, but Starfire folded like origami. She sighed heavily,

"All right, I will be there as soon as I can."

"Thanks Starfire" sighed Raven in relief, then they said their goodbyes and hung up.

Starfire put the phone down and slipped back into her rapidly cooling bed. She would go, but no-one had said she had to be happy about it.


	2. Starfire's return

Chapter 2

As her train pulled into Jump City station, Starfire's stomach was in knots. She stepped off the train into blinding and accusing sunlight, greeted only by the smell of hot tarmac. Shielding her eyes, she lifted her bag onto her shoulder and moved towards the exit, people bustling all around her. She passed an aging poster with a picture of her and all the other Titans on it. Above their heads was written "Jump City, home to the Teen Titans". Starfire just averted her eyes and walked a little faster. At the door she hailed a cab, slid into the back and told the driver where to take her.

Standing on the shore opposite the T-Tower, Starfire seriously considered turning around and going away, this time not telling the Titans where she was going. Her eyes fell on Robin's bike, propped up carelessly against the door and only just visible in the distance. Suddenly her mind was filled with sweet, tingly memories of him, followed inevitably by the memory of their brake-up…..

Blackfire was back in town, and had come to see her. Starfire of course had turned her away, wanting nothing more to do with her sister's criminal activities, so Blackfire had gotten nasty.

"Oh, you don't want me _intruding_ on your and Robin's happiness, is that it?" she said, her eyes narrowed to serpentine slits.

"It is not that, it is the fact that you are a criminal. You tried to frame me for your crimes." Starfire had replied, trying to remain calm.

"Don't lie to me, sister. Anyway I don't know why you bother, you_ know_ he doesn't love you. He's only with you so he doesn't get bored, as soon as someone better comes along, he'll drop you like a rock." Outraged, Starfire slammed the door in her sister's face, but she could feel the seed of doubt nestled deep in her belly.

Later that night, she had had a huge and bitter fight with Robin, fuelled in part by what Blackfire had said. They both said some horrible things, all she wanted to do was hurt him as much as she could. Things escalated, but they definitely finished when Starfire threw starbolts at him.

Starfire rushed to her room in tears, but once she'd cried herself out and found she couldn't sleep, or stand one minute more letting Robin think she hated him, she had gone to his room to apologise, only it was Blackfire who had opened the door. She was wearing Robin's cape around her shoulders, covering herself, but only just.

"Blackfire? Where is Robin? What have you done with him?" she said, her voice rising.

"Oh sorry sis, Robin can't come to the door right now, I seem to have exhausted him." replied Blackfire innocently, full of sweet smiles and doe-eyes, but the malice was there, lurking beneath the surface like a cobra waiting to strike.

"If you have hurt him I'll-" Starfire had pushed past her sister and stopped dead. Robin was sitting on his bed with his back to her hastily pulling on a pair of trousers.

"On the contrary, he seemed to quite enjoy it." said Blackfire, victory seasoning her voice and ringing in Starfire's ears until she thought she might go deaf as the horrifying truth became clear. Robin turned to look imploringly at Starfire.

"Starfire, I-"

Starfire never heard what he said next because she'd turned on her heel and ran, tears streaming down her face. She could hear Robin running after her but she quickly found the nearest window and dove out of it, only just managing to stay aloft as her heart silently screamed her agony.

She snuck back in a few days later to collect what she needed, then she left Jump City for good.

Starfire re-adjusted her bag on her shoulder and flew over the lake separating the Tower from the rest of the city. She touched down silently right in front of the door, and she rang the bell. She stepped back while she waited for someone to answer the door. In the end it was Cyborg who opened it. He stood blinking in the doorway before saying –

"Starfire? Is that really you?"

"It is, Cyborg." Starfire gave her friend a hug, which he nervously returned, before stepping inside.

"Man, Raven told us you were coming but we didn't think you'd actually do it, not with Robin here and everything." he said, amazement clear on his face. Starfire's face, however, fell.

"Yes, Robin's presence here is regrettable, but I have come to help my friend Raven and I have decided that my past with Robin shall not get in the way of my friendships anymore." she said, her uneasy English returning with the stress she was under like a stutter.

" Good for you, Star, we were all getting tired of not having you around anyway. Come on, let's go see the others."

Cyborg led Starfire into the living room. Beastboy was playing video games and had his back to the door, Raven was sitting in a chair next to him reading, her pregnancy already showing, and Robin was sitting oblivious at the kitchen table going over newspaper clippings and blueprints, presumably working on some new villain. Raven was the first to notice Starfire, she looked up as soon as she came in and smiled, it was a small smile but a smile none the less. It made her look a bit like the Mona Lisa.

"Who was at the door, Cy?" said Beastboy, twisting his body to match his car's movements in a futile attempt to go faster.

"See for yourself, man" was his only reply.

Beastboy turned around quickly then did a double take.

"Star? Oh my god." he said in astonishment. Robin's head shot up to stare at Starfire, which she saw but decided to ignore.

"Hello friend Beastboy" Starfire said and she went over and hugged him. "And hello to you too, friend Raven" she said, her English reflecting her frantic heart beat and manic interior, though she looked at ease on the outside. She hugged Raven too, who stayed sitting down.

"I didn't think I'd see you here again." said a resentful voice behind her. Starfire turned and found herself face to face with Robin, who was standing just a little too close for comfort.

"Hello Robin, I did not expect to be here again. I came because friend Raven asked me to, to help her with her pregnancy."

"Hey, what about me, Rae? I am the father of the child, you know." interjected Beastboy, looking hurt but puffing out his chest with pride.

"I know, I know," said Raven stoically, "but I felt I needed female company" she continued on a cheerier note, widening her eyes suggestively, but neither Robin nor Starfire noticed. They appeared to be having some sort of staring contest, and not in a nice way.

"Starfire, let me show you to your room." said Raven trying to brake her and Robin up. "It's just your old room" she said as she began trying to get up. Her plan worked and Starfire pried her eyes away from Robin's to look at Raven.

"Oh no, remain seated, friend Raven, if it is the same room as I used to have then I can find my own way there." she said with a smile.

"Wow Star, are you sure? You've been gone so long…" said Robin in mock concern but each word was bitter and spiteful. Starfire only shot him a hateful glare as she passed him to go to her room.

In her room, she sat on her bed with her head in her shaking hands, reflecting on how big a mistake she had made in coming back.


	3. Dinner with the Titans

Chapter 3

"Starfire?" said Raven from the other side of Starfire's door. Starfire emerged from the bathroom flanked by a cloud of steam, wearing a fluffy white dressing-gown and towelling her wet hair. She opened the door,

"Hello, Raven, what is it?" she said with a smile.

"Just letting you know, dinner's going to be on the table in ten minutes." Raven turned to leave but Starfire called her back.

"Er, Raven, will Robin be eating with us?" She tried to make it sound innocent, but Raven saw straight through her and sighed,

"I'm afraid he will be, Star, or at least, Cyborg's gone to tell him to come and eat. But don't let him stop you spending time with us. We're your friends too." Starfire felt a twinge of guilt,

"I know, and as I told Cyborg earlier, I will no longer avoid all of you, just for his sake."

Raven smiled that serene smile again," Good. See you at dinner."

Star shut her door and turned to her bag. Hands on her hips, she stared at it impatiently, trying to decide on what she would wear, since she'd left her uniform at home, not that it still fit anyway.

Meanwhile…

"Rob? It's me, Cy,"

Robin opened his door a crack, with just one side of his face showing, like Raven used to do. "What is it, Cy?"

"Can I come in?"

Robin seemed to contemplate this for a while, before swinging the door wide and motioning for his friend to come in. He turned his back on Cyborg, leaving him to close the door. Robin went back to his desk and whatever he had been working on before the interruption.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" he said.

"Well I'm supposed to be telling you that dinner will be ready in ten minutes…" said Cyborg.

"But?" said Robin, picking up on his friend's loaded pause and bracing himself for what he knew was coming.

"But what I really want to talk to you about is Starfire." Cyborg finished warily.

"There's nothing to talk about." said Robin dismissively.

"That's not how I see it."

"Well it's how I see it. Besides, this really has nothing to do with you."

Cyborg knew his friend was stressed, so he didn't take his comments to heart.

"It has something to do with me if you two tear each other apart before she's even been here 24 hours. It has something to do with all of us," Cyborg waited, evaluating Robin's composure to see if he could make this next accusation. Robin remained silent, and continued to stare at the maps and newspaper clippings that baffled Cyborg. "if you force her away again."

His leader's reaction was instantaneous. Robin span around to face him, indignation plain on his masked face.

"I did _not_ force her away, Cyborg. She left on her own, and without even letting me explain, so don't you try to blame me for it. You know what happened." He turned away again, giving Cyborg a mildly dirty look as he did so. Cyborg sighed,

"Look man, I can tell you still love her. Why don't you just tell her, apologise, see if she'll take you back? All this fighting is killing you, both of you." He implored.

"In that case I guess I'll die." Robin mumbled, he was just being difficult, but Cyborg couldn't ignore that. He frowned,

"So you'd rather die than be with Starfire?" he said angrily. Robin paused,

"No," he sighed, all the spirit going out of him. He put his hands on his desk, bracing his elbows to hold himself up. "I'd rather die than be without her."

Cyborg was taken aback,

"Tell her that, then." he said.

"I can't"

"Why not?" Cyborg couldn't understand it. His fearless leader was resolutely refusing to take a chance for what he obviously wanted. Robin turned back to face him, and the barely hidden vulnerability and honesty in his face was startling.

"Because what if she takes me back, and I screw it up again? I couldn't go through that, I couldn't lose her a second time." Robin said. Cyborg didn't know what to say, he just let Robin continue, "At least now she's around, at least now I can see her smile, even if it's not for me." The last was said quietly, almost as if he was saying for himself.

"Okay man," said Cyborg, not having the heart to pursue the matter, turning to leave Robin alone. When he reached the door, he had to turn back. " I forgot, are you coming to dinner?"

Robin muttered something and waved his hand, which Cyborg took to mean yes.

At dinner, all the Titans sat down together at the table. Robin and Starfire were trying their best to ignore each other, and the others were watching them apprehensively. No-one was talking, and everyone felt it.

"Hey, why did the tofu cross the road?" Beastboy said at last. Raven shot him a warning glance and Cyborg shook his head. "What? Come on, it's like somebody's died in here" he said.

"Maybe we just don't have anything to talk about." said Raven trying to smooth things over and pretend the air wasn't so thick with tension you could cut it with a knife.

"I bet I could think of a few things to talk about" mumbled Beastboy glancing meaningfully at Starfire and Robin. Cyborg jerked and Beastboy howled in pain. He had just kicked him under the table. "Hey man, what the hell was that for? I'm only saying what everybody's thinking."

"Cut it out, both of you." snapped Robin.

"Oh, I enjoy Beastboy and Cyborg's discourse even if you don't, Robin. And you know all about that." came Starfire's venomous reply.

"And just what is that supposed to mean?" said Robin, responding to Starfire's challenge in kind.

"Nothing Robin," said Starfire innocently, making her eyes wide, "Just that you are experienced in enjoying things that hurt others." The other Titans winced low down in their chairs, their heads snapping from side to side, watching Starfire and Robin fight like watching a tennis match.

"God Star, what's happened to you? Where's the Starfire I knew? Does she even exist anymore?" said Robin, shocked.

"Oh yes Robin, she still exists. Just not for you." And with that parting remark, Starfire stood up and took her plate to the sink. Taking advantage of Robin's stunned silence she turned to Raven, "Thank you for dinner Raven, I can only regret I did not get to enjoy it." Then she turned and stalked back to her room.

Three pairs of cautious eyes turned to look at Robin but he didn't seem to notice. Instead he slowly leant forward and put his head in his hands.


	4. A plan is born

Chapter 4

Starfire went straight to her room. That was where Raven found her, pacing back and forth with her head down.

"You want to talk about what just happened?" asked Raven eventually.

"No, I mean yes, I don't know," replied Starfire, running her fingers through her hair.

"Well here, stop pacing and sit down" Raven motioned to the bed and Starfire sat down next to her. After a moment Starfire started talking,

"Oh Raven, I just don't know what to do. I don't want to say these things but I can't help it. Just seeing him reminds me of what he did, and how much he hurt me. It makes me feel like it was just yesterday that he…" Her voice was full of pain and regret and she left her sentence unfinished.

"I can't imagine what that must be like," Raven began diplomatically "but if it helps Robin really feels terrible about that. He's a mess. You should have seen him the night you left. He kicked Blackfire out, in the middle of the night, half-naked. Then he got on his bike and searched the city for you. He didn't sleep for three days, so he crashed on the night you came back for your stuff. The morning he saw your stuff was gone, he punched a hole in the wall. I'd never seen him like that, it was a bit scary, we didn't dare talk to him. He wouldn't sleep, eat or go out except to look for you. It was a month before we even got him to tell us why you left."

Starfire didn't know if she felt better knowing that Robin had fallen apart without her, or worse. Even now she didn't want to cause him pain, not lasting pain anyway.

"Really?" she said.

"Really. But anyway, you came here to see me, right? So why are we talking about past times?" Raven smiled, "Come on, I'll teach you to play poker. Can't sit up here forever." And Raven took her friend's arm and dragged her towards the living room.

As Raven and Starfire sat at the table with a deck of cards shuffled and dealt between them, they could hear Robin in the gym, which was directly below the living room. Starfire looked around at her friends. Raven's hair was a little longer than it used to be and instead of being shorter at the back, it was now cut shorter at the front. Her pregnant stomach was visible but not uncomfortably so, and she wore a silver locket around her neck with a black raven in flight carved into the front. Beastboy had given it to her. Her uniform was basically the same except it had a long skirt with a slit that ran all the way up to go with it. Then she looked at Beastboy. He had filled out somewhat since the last time she had seen him. His shoulders were wider, he was more muscular, and he'd shot up like a weed, making him taller even than Cyborg. But you could see in his face that he was still the same fun-loving goof that he had always been. Cyborg was different somehow. He appeared to be less chunky, and more at ease with himself. Starfire was just thinking what it could be when something occurred to her,

"Excuse me, Cyborg, have your mechanical parts been renewed?" she asked.

"Yup," he said lifting his arm to show her and straightening his back with pride. "I outgrew the old ones. These are more advanced."

Starfire looked at them, and they did look sleeker and less cumbersome. She smiled appreciatively and Cyborg went back to his game. _I wonder if I have really changed… _she thought.

"Raven, is Robin right? Have I changed?" she asked apprehensively.

"Don't worry about what Robin said Star, he was just mad." she said, examining her hand of cards. But Starfire couldn't shake it. She looked down at herself. _I suppose I must have changed… at least a little._ Her hair was shorter by about two inches and layered more. She wasn't wearing her uniform anymore, she had grown out of it and left it at home. Instead she was wearing a purple halter top that was the same shade as her uniform and some plain black jeans with boots. Black, green and silver jewellery encircled her wrists, upper arms and fingers, with matching earrings.

"But do you think I am more unkind?" she asked Raven.

"That comes from living on Earth, Star. Besides, you're only really mean to _him_." said Raven, nodding her head in the direction of the gym. They could still hear Robin training, his grunts and the punch-bag swinging on it's chain and the repeated slam of him hitting it.

Then they heard the chain brake and a few minutes later, Robin walked in. He faltered a bit at seeing Starfire at the table but apart from that he ignored her completely. He just walked right past her to the fridge and got a bottle of water. He drunk deeply, closing his eyes, giving Starfire a good look at line of his neck. Sweat ran in tiny rivulets from his temples, and his muscular chest expanded and contracted fiercely. He finished drinking and Starfire quickly averted her eyes back to her cards.

"Hey Cy, the bag in the gym needs a new chain." said Robin to Cyborg's turned back.

"I'm on it." replied Cyborg, half-way through beating Beastboy at some new video game. And with that Robin left, taking what was left of his water with him, drying his face and hair on a towel that was slung around his neck. Once Raven was sure he was out of earshot, she leant forward and said to Starfire in a lowered voice,

"What was that? I saw the way you looked at him. Do you still love him?"

" No, I was merely watching him to see if he would insult me again." Starfire lied. But if there was one thing the Tamaranian couldn't do, it was lie successfully.

Later that night, once Robin and Starfire had both retired to their rooms, Raven gathered the other teens together.

"Look guys," she said "we have got to do something about Robin and Starfire. It's obvious they still love each other."

"Tell me about it. When we were younger it was almost funny watching them tiptoe 'round each other." said Beastboy.

"Yeah, but now they don't so much tiptoe around as aim and fire at each other." added Cyborg.

"If it was just Robin, as we thought, then I would leave them alone, but it's not. Starfire loves him back." said Raven.

"If you mean that thing today in the kitchen after his training, are you sure that wasn't just… you know… lust?" said Cyborg.

"I _am_ an empath, Cyborg, and that wasn't just lust, she really misses him. But it's not just that, I felt her emotions earlier in her room as well."

"Well what should we do?" said Beastboy.

"I think I have an idea…….." she said. And together the three Titans conspired to get their friends to express their true feelings, and they all went to bed with a mischievous grin. Except for Raven, of course, her smile was simply serene.


	5. Being difficult

Chapter 5

Robin shot up in bed. Everything was quiet and dark, but he was panting and covered in a cold sweat. He had been having a nightmare. About Starfire, and the night she left.

It was Starfire's voice that had woken him, she was knocking on his door, which had confused him for a second. He looked down at the girl next to him, at the sparkling purple eyes and silken mass of black hair. His skin crawled instinctively at the sight of her.

"Blackfire?..." Robin's brain was having trouble processing it all. Unfortunately, Blackfire got up and threw his cape over her shoulders, tossing him a coy glance with a sway of her hips. Understanding poured over him like a bucket of ice water. He decided he didn't need to know how she got there, everything depended on him stopping Starfire from seeing her there, standing in his doorway wearing only his cape. He flung himself out of the bed and frantically reached for his trousers. But he was too late. He heard the door click open and the world ground to a halt. Starfire's voice float through the gap.

"Blackfire? Where is Robin? What have you done with him?" She sounded hurt and confused. Robin wrenched his trousers on so fast he thought they'd tear. He was going to explain everything, she would understand, she would forgive him, she had to. He was vaguely aware of Blackfire making some snide comment. Trousers on, he turned ready to tell Starfire what happened so they could boot Blackfire out together. But the disbelief and tears in her beautiful emerald eyes tore the words from his throat. Knowing that he was the cause of her pain hurt like a wrecking ball to the chest.

"Starfire, I-" But she was gone. He tore after her, knocking Blackfire down as he went. He almost had her but she opened a window and took off. Blackfire's laughter rang through the corridor as Robin could only watch as his angel flew away from him and into the night.

Robin flopped back onto his bed and ran his hands through his tousled hair. _How am I going to get through this?_ he thought.

Raven was talking to Cyborg and Beastboy in one corner of the room.

"The first thing we have to do is implant the idea of getting back together in their heads. Even if they dismiss it, it will still be there. Cyborg, I'm going to need you to talk to Robin, ask him if he still loves her, would he take her back, etc,"

"Um, I kinda already did that," said Cyborg.

"Doesn't matter, do it again. I'll take Starfire."

"What about me?" said Beastboy

"Beastboy, you prepare this room for them. Fix the door, check that there isn't anything sharp in here." said Raven. Beastboy smiled, but didn't laugh, in case she wasn't joking.

Then Starfire walked in and they separated to have breakfast.

Cyborg did as instructed and after breakfast he followed Robin out of the room.

"Hey, Robin!" he called. Robin turned and smiled at him.

"Yeah?"

"Er," Cyborg didn't really know what to say. He probably should have come up with something before hand. "How are you?" he said fishing around. "You don't look so good." It was true Robin was looking a bit dishevelled this morning.

"Oh, I'm okay, I didn't really sleep well last night. Nightmares." Robin said, turning away and starting to walk again. Cyborg saw his window of opportunity.

"Oh yeah? About what? Starfire?" He guessed. If he was wrong, Robin would get suspicious and maybe blow the whole thing. But his friend just laughed unhappily and said,

"That obvious, huh?" Cyborg held in a sigh of relief.

"I just know you, you know? If you're losing sleep about it, I still say you should just explain to her what happened, it could really make a difference."

"Well I still say I shouldn't. I'm not about to start making excuses, besides she hates my guts."

"It wouldn't be making excuses, it would be… explaining what made you do it."

"I can't help but notice you didn't deny her hating me." said Robin.

"No" sighed Cyborg, he was losing this battle. "Just think about it, okay?"

"Maybe" said Robin, shutting his door in Cyborg's face. Cyborg had been so preoccupied in convincing Robin to tell Starfire the truth that he hadn't even noticed they'd reached his room. Cyborg shook his head, he'd done the best he could.

Raven was having a slightly easier time of things, but only because her charge was naturally more amicable.

"What if Robin said he still loved you? Would you consider it then?" she asked.

"Maybe, I don't know. I still don't see why we're even having this conversation." replied Starfire.

"I don't like to see you unhappy." Raven could sense her friend's suspicion.

"You ask me if I would consider taking Robin back if he still loved me, but that's irrelevant. If he loved me he wouldn't have slept with Blackfire." said Starfire. Raven bit her tongue. "Please, Raven, I would like to be alone now."

"Okay, I'll leave you alone." Raven left her friend's room, then walked down to the main room to wait for Cyborg and see how Beastboy was doing.

At noon, Raven declared that she and Beastboy were going out to the new vegy bar downtown for lunch, then Cyborg said he was going to go over to Steel City and check in on the Titans East. All this meant that Robin and Starfire would be alone in the tower for a couple of hours. They didn't say anything but Raven could sense Robin's suspicion and Starfire's annoyance.

The time alone was going well, mainly because they never saw or spoke to each other. Robin spent time in the gym, and when he finished he made his way up to the kitchen for something to eat. He reached the thick doors and they slid open automatically. What he saw made him stop in his tracks. Starfire was inside, and she was dancing. Robin could see the silver case of a diskman and he couldn't help himself from leaning on the door to watch. It seemed Starfire had picked up how to dance in her three years away, because this wasn't the erratic dancing of Tameran that Robin was so used to, but the slow, seductive weave of Earth's various clubs. Her hips swung side to side and her shoulders rolled in the opposite direction. He was mesmerized and sinking fast, but was brought quickly to his senses as she turned and saw him watching her. She angrily pressed a button on her diskman and put it down on the counter.

"Don't you knock?" she spat.

"Why would I knock? I'm the one who lives here." Robin replied. She scowled at him as he walked towards the kitchen part of the room. Starfire marched past him to leave, but stopped at the door, she frowned and punched in a code on the panel next to the door, but still it didn't open. She turned to him with her arms crossed.

"The door will not open."

"What?" said Robin. He walked to the door and tried his own code, not failing to noticed the way Starfire took several steps back when he got even remotely close to her, but the panel just beeped and rejected him. He frowned for a second, then he smiled.

"This is your doing." said Starfire.

"What! Me! Why would I lock myself in a room alone with you?" he said. "It's the others. They want us to talk. We did something similar to Raven and BB. Except with them we didn't lock them in together, we just left the tower. They must not trust us to spend any time with each other."

"There is nothing to talk about" she said, moving away from the door and charging up her hands with starbolts.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said Robin, "Not only would the blast be reflected back at you, but the others are probably on the other side of the door anyway."

"How did he know?" whispered Beastboy to Raven, who were indeed listening outside in the corridor.

"But it's good to know that you would rather blast your way through six inches of re-enforced steel than be in the same room as me." said Robin sarcastically. He went and sat down in front of the TV and began flicking through channels. After a minute, Starfire sat down across from him without looking at him.

"I think I have every right to be angry, Robin, unlike you." she said.

"What!" Robin gasped, tossing the remote and forgetting the TV. "You abandoned us, Star, all of us. You left without even letting me explain."

"You want to explain? Go ahead, I'm listening." said Starfire hostily, leaning forward. Robin held her stare for a while, but ultimately looked away without speaking. Starfire leant back.

"I thought so. I loved you, you know, I really did. But what did you do? You slept with my sister and broke my heart. Seemingly for no reason. So excuse me for being a little upset." She look away from him and crossed her arms. There was a small pause, then Robin said quietly,

"Do you still love me?" Starfire's eyes narrowed and she turned to look at him.

"How dare you ask me that? I can't even look at you anymore." she said.

Outside, the other Titans were getting bored. They'd heard the argument enough times not to want to hear it again. Then they heard the arguing inside stop.

"What happened?" said Beastboy.

"They've stopped fighting." replied Cyborg in wonder. Just then Robin's voice spoke from their communicators.

"Nice try, guys," he said, "but she flew out the window."

Cyborg sighed, "Why do they have to be so difficult?"

"You didn't lock the windows?" said Raven to Beastboy.

Robin tapped his communicator thoughtfully. Starfire hadn't answered his question.


	6. Luke

Chapter 6

The next day, no-one was talking about what the three Titans had done. They had been expecting an angry scolding but it never came. Robin seemed too pre-occupied with his own thoughts and Starfire hadn't come back until late, and when she didn't bring it up, the others decided she didn't want to talk about it so they didn't mention it either. They considered themselves lucky. However, they could tell that there was something different about the general conduct of their friends. Robin would keep shooting glances at Starfire, as if he wanted to reassure himself, but everytime he did it only seemed to add to his uncertainties. As for Starfire, her anger had seemed to have grown, but she wasn't acting out. She would walk around with her teeth clenched and her eyes narrowed, but every so often she would sigh heavily, and her shoulders would slump and her face would relax into a sorrowful mask.

It was early in the afternoon, and the Titans were going about their various businesses, when the doorbell rang.

"I shall answer the door." called Starfire from the stairwell so that her voice would reach all the floors of the Tower. Robin was in the tech-room, researching some of the more substantial criminals. He pushed away from the desk and guided his rolling chair towards the security-camera monitors. He pressed some buttons and a view of the front door flashed onto the screen. He frowned slightly as he studied the man at the door. Robin didn't recognise him and it didn't seem like he was from Jump City. The man was heavily built but not fat, with brown hair and a tired leather jacket.

Robin watched as the door opened, though he couldn't see who had opened it. He rocked back in his chair as he watched and considered the scenario before him. The man seemed to be angry for some reason. Robin lurched forward with a thump as the man on the screen reached through the door, and wrenched Starfire outside by her wrist. Robin's hands clenched into fists as he forced himself to stay put and not intervene. _Imagine what she would say if I was wrong…_ he thought. The man began to speak to Starfire, and it was obvious that he was angry. _What could he be so mad about?_ Robin wondered as the man got more and more wound up. His feet began to tap irritably. _Come on Starfire, stand up for yourself_ . Robin cursed the lack of audio on the security cameras and made a mental note to talk to Cyborg about it. Starfire appeared to be just taking the abuse, nodding slightly and wringing her hands.

Finally, she reacted. The man had said something, crossed a line, that made Starfire's head snap up to look at him. Robin could see her lips moving and he smiled triumphantly. _Ha ha, now he's in for it_ he thought. All feelings of triumph and satisfaction vanished and his eyes widened in horror. The man had just back-handed Starfire to the face, knocking her off her feet. Robin was on his feet and out of the room in a split-second, while the monitors still held images of Starfire on the ground with her hands pressed to her cheek.

"Yeah, stay down. I don't know why I bother with you. You're just a waste of space, has anyone ever told you that?" Luke spat on the ground. He turned away and took a few steps of frustration before turning back again. Starfire had meanwhile raised herself up onto her hands and knees. This only made Luke madder and he took a big step, closing the distance between them, and used the momentum to kick Starfire hard, in the ribs, forcing her to the ground again.

Robin's heavy, steel-toed boots collided with the side of Luke's head. He fell to the ground seeing stars, and quickly lost conciousness. Robin stood over him as he toyed with the idea of beating him some more. A gasp to his left drove every other thought from his mind. Starfire lay on the ground clutching her side. Her eyes were wide and she was gasping repeatedly as if she couldn't get enough air. She kept rolling from side to side, trying to get up, but everytime she just fell back again. Robin ran over to her and knelt next to her.

"Starfire? Starfire! Are you okay? Who is that guy?" A thousand questions raced through his head but he ignored them all when he saw the agony on her face.

"Okay ,Star, let's just get you to the infirmary and Raven will fix you right up. You're going to be fine." he said. He reached for her wrist and pulled her arm over his shoulders to help her stand. She rose a few inches before collapsing back onto the ground. Robin stared at the situation before him feeling helpless and cursed his lack of medical knowledge at seeing his friend that way. _It's obvious she can't walk,_ he analysed,_ so I'm going to have to carry her. _A smaller voice told him she wouldn't like that, but he decided he couldn't care less. He bent down and scooped her up in his arms, with one arm supporting her back, and the other at her knees. She pushed feebly at his chest and turned her head away.

"No, Star, no objections. You can't walk so I'm carrying you. End of story." he said, and she lay still. Robin kicked the door to the Tower open,

"Raven!" he shouted up the stairs, "Raven!" _God, I hope I'm in time,_ he thought, _Please, Starfire, please be alright._


	7. Aftermath

Chapter 7

Robin was pacing furiously in the corridor outside the infirmary. _It's been too long, _he thought, _What could they be doing in there? She must be really hurt._ Robin felt like his heart was drowning, like it had stopped beating.

"Who _was _that guy?" said Beastboy, breaking the silence, but not the tension. "Is he like her b-boyfriend, or something?" He had stuttered because he hadn't wanted to hurt Robin with the thought of Starfire with another man. Ironic, considering what had happened with him and Blackfire.

"I don't know." muttered Robin in reply.

"Some boyfriend if he is." said Cyborg. Robin spun on his heel for the hundredth time.

"Robin, man, you're wearing a hole in the carpet." said Beastboy, Robin ignored him. Just then Raven emerged from the infirmary, closing the door softly behind her, and Robin had to stop himself from grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her.

"How is she? Is she okay?" he said frantically. Raven looked him in the eye,

"She has two broken ribs, which punctured her lung. That's why she couldn't breath properly." she said. "I was able to re-inflate the lung and there was no serious damage to her jaw, so she's going to be okay. Though by the looks of things, this isn't the first time. I found numerous scars and bruises, all places where you wouldn't see them. This guy's a pro."

"Son of a bitch" Robin swore under his breath.

Robin moved to enter the room but Raven put a hand on his chest to stop him.

"She's resting now. Why don't you show us the security videos?" she said, trying to distract him. He looked at the door in front of him, then down at the woman next to him, and nodded.

Cyborg hooked the surveillance system up to the big screen TV and started the tape. The Titans watched as the whole scene played out before them. They had just reached the part where Starfire was getting up, right before _he_ kicked her when Robin said,

"Wait, pause it. Go back." Cyborg obliged and rewound the tape. They all watched Robin in confusion until ,

"Stop, there," he was pointing to the screen, where Starfire was just beginning to push herself up.

"What is that?" said Cyborg. A green glow could be seen underneath the girl on the screen.

"It's her powers." answered Raven.

"But Robin said she never used her powers…" said Beastboy.

"She didn't," said Robin, "She actually _surpressed _her powers, she wouldn't fight him." He sounded defeated.

"Why?" asked Beastboy. But Robin didn't answer, he was too caught up in his own thoughts. _Why wouldn't she fight him? Does she… love him?_ he thought. Robin walked calmly out of the room, leaving the others to watch the rest of the tape.

Robin stood looking at the man in the cell before him. The Tower had a built-in cell, just in case, and that's where they had stashed Luke. Robin smiled as he saw the mass of greens and purples rising on Luke's face, the bruise his kick had created. He flexed his fingers as he toyed with the thought of doing some more damage to the scumbag. He laughed cruelly and stood unflinching as Luke tried to grab him through the bars.

"I'm going to ask you some questions, ……?" he said.

"Luke" the man replied.

"Luke, I'm going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer them."

"I don't gotta tell you nothing" said Luke, giving Robin a dirty look. "Look what you did to my face." He turned to give Robin a good view of his injury. _I can do so much worse to you… _ thought Robin, but he didn't say it. Instead he plastered on an obviously fake smile and said,

"Do you want to stay in the cell forever?"

"You can't keep me here, I got friends who'll look for me." Luke replied.

"Somehow, I doubt that." said Robin. Luke sized him up, his eyes scanned Robin's broad shoulders and muscular arms until they came to rest on the determined look on his face.

"What do you wanna know?"

Robin smiled again, enjoying the primal, malicious pleasure you get from being undeniably better than your enemy, and watching them squirm. "Why don't we start with who you are, and we'll go from there." he said.

" Er, well, my name's Luke"

"Yeah, I got that, Luke, what are you doing here?"

Luke frowned. "I came to get my woman back, traitcherous snake that she is."

Robin's eyebrows shot up. _So, Beastboy was right_. The buzz from his victory began to fade. He wasn't a god who's wrath was to be feared anymore, now he was just a man, facing another man who had what he wanted.

"You mean Starfire?" He waited while the second it took him to reply stretched out like minutes, his whole body dreading the answer.

"No," Robin felt like he had just fallen backwards into warm water as relief flooded his soul, and the demon in him began to grin again. "Corry, my girl's name is Corry." Luke finished. Robin's heart dropped to his feet, _Corry, Koriand'r, he does mean Starfire._ he realised, _Damn_.

"How did you know she was here?" he asked.

"Oh well, that took a bit of detective work y'see." said Luke, puffing out his chest with pride. "Corry told me she used to live here in Jump City and apparently her old boyfriend was one of you 'Teen Titans'" Luke scoffed. " She used to be one of you, don't know if you remember." _Of course I remember, _thought Robin. "But I soon broke that out of her. A woman's place is in the home, and in my bed." Luke winked at Robin in a misguided attempt at a "men together" moment, but Robin just felt like he was going to breath fire. Just the thought of that man touching his precious, delicate Starfire made bile rise in his throat. "But that one, she isn't easy, let me tell you, but I just show her who's boss, and she quietens right down." The image of Starfire struggling to breath surfaced in Robin's mind and he glared at him beneath his mask. "I wouldn't take a woman like that to my bed though, don't know where she's been. No, I have other women for that, human women, if y'know what I mean." Robin thought he might faint from the pure bliss he felt at hearing that Starfire hadn't suffered that particular fate from this particular man. He knew he wouldn't give Starfire the gentle touch she deserved, he'd probably just… Robin put an end to that thought before it could go any further." Hey, man, you okay?" said Luke, finally noticing Robin's pallor and set jaw.

"I'm fine, better than that in fact." Robin answered and he left the room, leaving Luke calling out behind him,

"Hey man, where are you goin'? Aren't you gonna let me out?"


	8. Confessions

Chapter 8

As soon as Starfire woke up she knew she was in the infirmary. Still suspended between sleep and conciousness she had a second to wonder why. Then she tried to sit up, and remembered, thanks to the sharp pain in her side. She dreaded the thought of having to explain all that to the other Titans, so she decided not to think about it. She looked around the room instead. It was night, and the room was flooded with the dark, except for pale streams of moonlight that came through the gap in the curtains. An incessant but faint beeping came from a machine next to her, which she decided was monitoring her pulse. She looked down at her self, she was in her pyjamas, presumably Raven had put them on her, but she could feel to tight bandages encasing her ribcage. Her clothes were stacked on a chair on one side of her. A small noise drew her attention to her other side. Starfire jumped when she saw Robin, asleep, in a chair facing her bed. She stared at him for a moment, his hair was in dissaray, but apart from that he looked quite peaceful. Starfire remembered when she first arrived in Jump City and joined the Teen Titans. He had been so kind and understanding, yet brave and strong. _He hasn't changed much,_ Starfire thought before she could stop herself. Starfire frowned and concentrated on noticing the differences between this Robin and the one she had fallen in love with. His uniform was similar, but with slight changes here and there. He still had the big, steel-toed boots and the green trousers, which looked a dark, rich jade in the dark. Though his cape was longer than it used to be, and his shirt now had full-lengthed sleeves with long black gloves running up to just below his elbow, and instead of being all red, it was black with red. The old yellow "T" was still there, though.

The door opened a crack and Raven peered in.

"Oh, you're awake." she said. "How are you feeling?"

"I am feeling very sore and it hurts to breath." Starfire answered.

"Yeah, it'll be like that for a couple of weeks, give or take. How fast do Tameranians heal anyway?"

"Not much faster than humans." replied Starfire sullenly as Raven checked her progress on the various machines. "How long have I been asleep?" she asked.

"About eight hours, I'm only up because I had to go to the bathroom, another joy of being pregnant."

"And how long has Robin been here?"

Raven checked her watch, "About seven hours and thirty-five minutes." she said, smiling faintly.

Starfire nodded and looked at the man in the chair across from her.

"He was really worried about you, you know." said Raven.

"Yes, I remember him carrying me and telling me I was going to be alright."

"Well, try to rest some more and I'll check on you in the morning."

"I will." Starfire said with her eyes still watching Robin. She heard the door close and she adjusted herself for sleep. She lay with her head on the pillow, facing Robin, until she fell asleep. Then she started to dream,

_She and Robin were on the roof watching the sunset. They weren't talking, but they could each feel the other one, close enough to touch, but still too far apart. She saw Robin turn his head to look at her out of the corner of her eye._

"_Are you happy here, Star?" he asked._

"_Oh, yes. Earth is most exciting, it is a wondrous place." She replied._

"_No, I meant with us."_

"_I am also happy with the Teen Titans, you have all become my best of friends."_

"_No, I meant with me, and you." There was something in his voice that made Starfire turn to look at him._

"_What do you mean?" Robin laughed, and reached out to trace his fingers along her arm, making her shiver, before letting his hand fall._

"_These four inches between us. So small, and yet neither of us is willing to cross them. We've fought countless enemies, and won countless battles. Why is it so hard to just close this small distance?"_

"_I do not think I understand, friend Robin" He sighed,_

"_Do you ever think we could be more than just friends, Starfire?" He said, fixing her with an intense stare. Starfire remained silent. Robin shook his head and stood up. "Forget I mentioned it." he said, and turned to go back inside._

"_Robin, wait" said Starfire getting up as well. She reached out and grabbed his hand. Electricity ran up their arms and Robin turned, with a look of amazement on his face. Then he started to grin, he twisted his hand an entwined his fingers with hers. "After all these years, you still have the strength and courage that I don't." he slowly pulled her towards him. Still grinning, Robin moved even closer, pressing their bodies together. He wasn't smiling anymore. He kissed her, and Starfire could feel everything, she could feel his lips on hers and the solid press of his chest with a very un-dreamlike precision. Mimicking his movements, she kissed him back. Then their kiss took on a passion neither of them thought they had and they kissed fast and furiously, ignoring the need to breath. They kissed as if it was the air, and they were drowning. His hand found the back of her neck, while she wrapped her arms around him. They fit together perfectly, and still they kissed, faster and harder, completely losing themselves in each other………_

Starfire woke with a start, slightly panicked. She could still feel his kiss on her lips and his chest beneath her hands. She flexed them repeatedly and wiped them on the bed-covers, trying to eradicate the lasting traces of him. She glanced worriedly over at the chair, but it was empty. She exhaled slowly and tried to relax. Then the door opened and in came Robin, and the dream came flooding back to her, she tried frantically to push it away before he noticed her. He was carrying a tray with breakfast on it. He glanced towards the bed and stopped.

"Oh, you're awake." he said. Starfire only nodded. "Raven told me you woke up during the night, but I was asleep." Again Starfire could only make a small "mmhmm". He stopped abruptly and put the tray down. "Look, if you're mad at me for kicking that guy then you can forget it because like hell I'm going to apologise. He had it coming." he said. Starfire frowned remembering the day before. Robin sat back down in the chair, and there was a short silence. "How you doing, Star?" he said quietly. Starfire considered her answer carefully,

"Raven tells me I will be well again in some weeks." she said.

"I didn't mean physically."

"Oh." she said. This was dangerous territory. But Robin kept looking at her expectantly. She sighed, " I am… confused."

"Yeah, you and me both." he said, then it was like a dam broke. " How did you end up with that guy? Why didn't you fight back? How could you take that from _him_? I just can't understand it." he said. Starfire bristled,

"I appreciate your concern, Robin, but I do not think my life is any of your business." she said.

"I thought you might say something like that." replied Robin, sounding jaded.

"Then why did you ask?"

"Because I need to understand. I need to know why you … I wanna say "left" but I know that, why you _stay_ with him."

"Why do you care so much about me?" said Starfire protectively.

"_Because _I care so much about you." said Robin, before looking away. Starfire was quiet for a moment, with Robin's voice still ringing in her ears.

"What do you want to know?" she almost whispered. Robin looked at her.

"Why are you with him when he beats you? And cheats on you? And why did you leave me for doing less? Do you love him?" Starfire, again, had to consider her answer before speaking. She looked into Robin's eyes and saw that he didn't mean any harm. She sighed.

"I suppose I am with him because… I do not want to be alone. It makes me feel better to know that somebody knows who I am, and where I am, and cares for me." Robin was about to interrupt, but Starfire held up her hand to stop him, "Yes I know he does not love me, but he would look for me if I did not come home, if only to do his laundry and cook his food. And he did look for me, didn't he?" Robin didn't say anything. "As for his… infidelity, he may sleep with disreputable girls he finds in bars, but it is me he comes home to."

"So you do love him." said Robin sadly. Starfire shook her head, "No, as much as I do for him, I cannot bring myself to love the man who does not love me." Robin breathed out a sigh of relief, but seeing that Starfire had noticed, quickly distracted her with, "Why did you leave me then? I never hit you, and I loved you."

Starfire looked down at her bed covers and began fiddling with a loose thread. "Earlier that day, Blackfire came to see me. She wanted to stay with us in the Tower but I told her no. So she started saying these things."

"What things?" asked Robin.

"She said that you did not love me, that you were only with me so as not to get bored. She said you would "drop me like a rock" as soon as you found someone better."

"Oh Christ, and I walked right into it." said Robin, distraught.

"Yes, by making love to you she did two things, she proved that you were in fact only with me so as not to get bored, and she proclaimed herself to be better than me." Tears were forming in Starfire's eyes. "Also on Tameran there is a saying" here she said something unintelligible in Tameranian, " it does not translate into english but it basically means that a person will always belong to their first lover, and that no other will ever have all of that person." Starfire choked back a sob, " So, now, you are Blackfire's, and you will never be mine."

Robin was dumbfounded. "Starfire, I had no idea, I …" he sighed, "I think it's time I explained to you why I slept with her. I didn't tell you before because I thought it would sound like I was making excuses, and you hated me anyway so I didn't think it would make a difference." Robin got up out of his chair and knelt next to Starfire. He took her hand in both of his. "I thought she was you." He said, he waited for a reaction but when it came it wasn't quite what he had expected.

"You… cannot even……tell the difference…between us!" she said angrily. Robin shook his head quickly,

"No, no, she looked like you, exactly like you. It was a trick she'd picked up on the moon of something! But I only found that out after you ran away, I swear. I would never have slept with her if I didn't think she was you! And I know I should have been able to tell anyway but I guess I just wanted it to be you so badly that I ignored my own senses. I hated having you mad at me so when you came to me, and you forgave me, and kissed me I just… lost my head. You were so beautiful with your hair shining in the moonlight, I wanted it to be you so badly." he finished. He eyed Starfire warily, "Do you forgive me?" he asked.

Starfire thought about the last three years of her life. She thought about her ugly, small apartement seven floors up off a filthy street, she thought about Luke who beats and insults her, she thought about the degrading job she has back home. Then she looked down at the man at her side, begging her with his eyes to stay with him, because he needed her. Then she looked towards the door and thought about all her friends, Cyborg who never let anyone down, Beastboy who could always make her laugh, and Raven, she was going to have a baby soon. Didn't she want to stay and see the baby? She realized the only time she had truly been happy was when she had been a Titan.

Starfire turned back to Robin.

"Yes, I forgive you." she whispered.

"And you'll stay, with me?"

"Yes, I'll stay, with you."

The joy Robin felt at that moment overrode any self-control he might have had. He whipped Starfire up in a giant hug, causing her to yelp and push him away, rubbing her injured ribs. They were so close, yet neither of them dared move an inch. That was when Starfire remembered her dream. She slowly raised her hand and laced her fingers with his.

"Oh, I forgot. What was it Luke said that finally made you fight back?" asked Robin. Starfire blushed,

"He accused me of still loving you." she answered.

He smiled at her and she pulled him down for a kiss, but he stopped and whispered against her lips "I shall _always_ be yours, completely". Starfire nodded and without moving away whispered back at him "I know." then she jerked him down and kissed him with the passion three years apart will give you.


End file.
